Comparison of old and modern wheat cultivars with respect to their drought stress reaction

Crop science, climate science

As part of the Collaborative Research Centre 1502 (DETECT) we are trying to understand how changes in agricultural management, like changes in grown cultivars, effect land-atmosphere interactions. Changes in cultivars and agricultural management during the last decades have not only led to yield increases, but also changed evaporation, water use and carbon sequestration of arable lands. To account for and implement cultivar changes in the land surface model CLM (https://www.cesm.ucar.edu/models/cesm2/land/), we need more information about the development of shoot and root traits of wheat cultivars throughout the last decades.

The objective of this study is to investigate and compare shoot and root traits of modern and old wheat cultivars, as well as their reaction to different drought treatments.

This study includes work on a pot experiment with three wheat cultivars and two watering treatments. Measurements will be done at multiple times during the growth season and have to be analyzed. A will to implement the results into a crop model is welcome, but not required.

We expect to see differences in the carbon partitioning and water requirements of modern and old wheat cultivars.

4 Months

English preferred, German possible

Dr. Thomas Gaiser, Dominik Behrend

dbehrend@uni-bonn.de